Dispensing holder for paper containers of milk or other liquids



March 3, 1959 J. B. NELSON 2,875,933

' DISPENSING ,HOLDER FOR PAPER CONTAINERS 0F v MILK OR OTHER LIQUIDS Filed May 51, 1957 ATTORNEY for their intended purposes,

or the strips are formed tively short United States Patet John B. Nelson, Sioux Falls, S. D'ak. Application May 31, 1957, Serial No. 662,894 4 Claims. (Cl'. 224-45) My invention relates to holders for paperboard cartons, and more particularly to a holder for paperboard containers for milk or other liquids.

The larger sizes of paperboard "milk containers, quart and half-gallon cartons, are difficu'lt to grasp by reason of their waxed or other coated surfaces, and additionally they are not easily manipulated when pouring the contents from the container. One of the difiiculties encountered in connection with the use of conventional paperboard milk cartons is the lack of desired control of the rate of flow of the milk from the carton, during the pouring operation. When milk is to be dispensed from a full carton, the nset generally grasps the top portion of the container and tilts the same to the pouring position. Since the carton, when filled, is initially relatively heavy, considerable dexterity is required to retain a firm grip on the waxed surfaces of the carton as it is tipped or turned to pouring position. As the milk is dispensed, the center of gravity of the carton and contents is lowered, and accordingly, the user is required to change the initial grippingposition to a point below the top portion of the container. This normally requires the use of both hands and interrupts continuous pouring of the milk. The same conditions exist when pouring milk from a container which is only partially full, and care must be exercised to prevent too rapid flow with resultant spilling or overflow of the receptacle into which the milk is being poured.

Heretofore it has been suggested to provide holders for milk cartons formed from wire or metal stripsadapted for engagement with one or more of the panels of the cartons, the holders having handle members positioned in the vicinity of the tops of thecartonsor intermediate the top and bottom portions thereof. While the prior art arrangements are no doubt functionally satisfactory they are open to certain objections which are inherent in their construction, and arrangement. With the holders formed from spring wire, gripping engagement with the carton is effected by moving spaced handle member's together so as to clamp the carton within the wire loops'designed to receive the carton. If the clamping pressure on the handle members is reduced, during the pouring operation,'as when chang- 'ing position of the hand when the center of gravity of the carton and contents becomes lower, the carton is liable to slip out of the holder.

Inthe devices formed from strip metal, retention of the carton within the holder is by means of frictional contact between the loops or strip sections which are flexed to receive the carton,

with means for direct engagement with one of the carton walls, and the handle members are positioned above the bottom of the carton, usually in the vicinity of the top thereof. With these devices a certain amount of manipulation is required to properly fit the holder to the carton, and'the comparahandles permit only limited movement of the users hand vertically thereof,--as the center of" gravity of the carton changes during the pouring operation.

In accordance with the present invention, the holder is preferably formed from asingle piece of light weight sheet metal, for example, tin, aluminum or like metals and alloys thereof; however, it may be formed of suitable plastics. When formed from metal, the sheet is cut in such fashion that when folded along the crease lines", and the overlapping portions of the side panels are fastened together, a generally cubical shaped, open ended container is provided to receive and support the carton. The holder is of-substa'ntially the same shape as the carton, but of slightly larger size, so that the carton ea'n be easily slipped into seated position within the holder. Aftached to the real-panel of the holder is a speeially'c'erifigured handle member which extends from the top to the bottom of the panel, and a gravity actuated latli, mounted on the top of the handle, is constructed and arranged to prevent the carto'nf'romsliding out ofthe holder when the holder is tipped or turned to the pouring position. p

An object of my invention is to provide an improved holder for paperboard containers for milk and other liquids.

Another object of my invention is to provide anproved holder for paperboard milk cartons having a handle member designed to facilitate pouring of milk from the carton.

Yet another object of my invention is to provide an improved holder for milk cartons designed for convenient handling of the carton,- and to permit controlled flow of milk as it is poured from the carton.

Still another object of my invention is toprovide an improved holder for milk cartons and the like, having gravity actuated means asso'diat'ed therewith adapted to prevent the carton from slipping out of the holder when the carton is turned to pouring position.

A further obect of my invention is to provide a holder for milk cartons and the like, formed from a single piece of sheet metal, and having a unitary handle designed for convenient and safe handling of the carton.

With these and other objects in view, which may be incident to my improvements, the invention consists in the parts and combinations to be hereinafters et forth and claimed, with the understanding that the several necessary elements, comprising my invention, maybe varied in construction, proportions and arrangement, without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims. 7 p

In order to make my invention more clearly understood, I have shown-in the accompanying drawings means for carrying the same into practical elfect, without limiting the improvements in their useful applications to the particular constructions, which for the purpose of explanation, havebeen madethe subject of illustration.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of the holder of the present invention, showing a milk carton seated therein;

Fig. 2 is a front elevational view of ton shown in Figure 1;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the holder;

Fig. 4 is a side elevational view showing the holder and carton in the pouring position; and

Fig. 5 is a vertical cross sectional view of'the latch, taken on line 5--5 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, the holder, designated generally by numeral 1, is formed from a single piece of sheet metal, which is folded and upturned, asshow'n to form an open topped cubical container having front and rear panels 2 and 3, side panels 4 formed by the overlapped pieces 5 and 6, and a flanged bottom member 7 to receive and support a carton. The holder is of substantially the same shape as the carton 8, but is made the holder and earslightly over-size in order that the carton may be easily positioned within the holder without forcing, and without bending the holder panels.

Attached to the rear panel 3, along the central vertical axis thereof, by means of metal straps 9, is a handle member 10, comprising a vertical leg 11, horizontal base and top portions 12 and 13, and an inwardly inclined gripping member 14. It will be noted that the lower surface of the base portion 12 of the handle is flush with the bottom panel 7 of the holder, and that the gripping portion 14 is tapered inwardly from the base 12 to the horizontal top portion 13. By reason of the construction and arrangement of the handle, the holder and associated carton may be easily lifted or otherwise handled, and milk poured from the carton with minimum eifort on the part of the user. The elongated hand-receiving opening 15, in combination with the tapered gripping portion 14, permits the handle to be grasped at various positions vertically of portion 14 whereby, as the center of gravity of the contents of the carton changes, as milk is poured therefrom, the user may shift to a different gripping position and thus maintain desired control of the flow of milk from the carton.

In order to prevent the carton from slipping out of the holder, when the holder is turned to pouring position, there is provided a gravity actuated latch 16, mounted on the top portion 13 of the handle member. Referring to Figs. 1 and 3, the latch comprises a fixed base 17, which is bent backwardly on itself to form a depending grooved or slotted portion 19, adapted to seat in a recess 19, formed in portion 13 of the handle, and a movable member or slide 20. The slide is formed with an upturned end thumb or finger-engaging projections 21, and a depending lug or plate 22 having a slot 23 formed therein, the lug having free sliding fit in the grooved portion 18 of the fixed member 17. The slide is retained in position on the fixed member, and the latter is secured within the recess of the handle by means of a pin 24, which extends through the slot 23 of the plate 22, the pin being insertable through aligned openings formed in the handle and in the depending portion -18 of the fixed member of the latch.

As the holder is turned to pouring position (Fig. 4), the slide 20 moves inwardly of its position shown in Fig. 1 under the influence of gravity, the upturned end Ztl thereof projecting over the upper rim of the holder and forming a stop against which one of the sloping end walls of the roof of the carton rests after initial movement of the carton from its normal seated position in the holder, whereby further movement of the carton out of the holder is prevented. Under certain conditions of use, positive retention of the slide in either the released or the latching position is effected by actuating it by means of the thumb or finger-engaging projections 21.

The holder of the present invention is designed for use with conventional paperboard milk cartons of the type shown, having a roof formed with sloping side and end walls 25, one of the end walls being constructed and arranged to provide a pouring spout 26. The side panels of the body portion of the cartons, or at least one of said panels, is labeled or printed with a description of the contents of the carton, and in order that the contents can be readily identified after the carton has been placed in the holder, the front panel 2 of the holder (Fig. 2) is provided with a rectangular shaped opening 27 through which the label or printing is visible.

There has been described and illustrated a device capable of performing all of the specifically mentioned objects of this invention as well as others which are apparent to those skilled in the art. Various uses of the present invention may be made employing the described structure. Accordingly, it is apparent that variations as to operation, size and shape, and rearrangement of elements may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. Accordingly, limitation is sought only in accordance with the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A holder for paperboard milk cartons and the like, comprising a cubical shaped container having front, rear and side panels, and a flanged bottom panel, a handle member secured to the rear panel along the central vertical axis thereof, said handle extending from the bottom to the top of the panel, and latch means mounted on the top of the handle, said latch means comprising a slide member operatively secured to the top portion of the handle and adapted for free sliding movement toward and away from the rear panel, whereby when the holder is turned to pouring position, the slide moves, under the influence of gravity, forwardly of the top of the handle into overhanging relationship with respect to said rear panel, thus preventing outward movement of a carton with respect to the holder.

2. A holder for paperboard milk containers and the like, comprising a cubical shaped container, including front, rear and side walls, and a flanged bottom wall, a handle member secured to the rear wall along the central vertical axis thereof, said handle extending the full length of the rear wall and having an elongated tapered handhold formed therein, and latch means mounted on the top of the handle, said latch means comprising a slide member operatively secured to the top portion of the handle and adapted for free sliding movement toward and away from the rear panel, whereby when the holder is turned to pouring position, the slide moves, under the influence of gravity, forwardly of the top of the handle into overhanging relationship with respect to said rear panel, thus preventing outward movement of a carton with respect to the holder.

3. A holder for paperboard milk containers and the like, comprising a cubical shaped container having front, rear and side panels, and a flanged bottom panel, a unitary handle for the container comprising horizontal top and bottom portions, a vertical leg and a forwardly tapered gripping member, said top and bottom portions, vertical leg and gripping member defining an elongated hand-hold, the vertical leg extending the full length of the rear panel and being secured thereto along the central vertical axis thereof, and latch means mounted on the horizontal top portion of the handle, said latch means comprising a slide member operatively secured to the horizontal top portion of the handle and adapted for free sliding movement toward and away from the rear panel, whereby when the holder is turned to pouring position, the slide moves, under the influence of gravity, forwardly of said horizontal top portion into overhanging relationship With respect to said rear panel, thus restraining outward movement of a carton with respect to the holder.

4. A holder for paperboard milk cartons and the like, comprising a cubical shaped container formed from a single piece of sheet material, said container having front, rear and side panels, and a flanged bottom panel, each of the side panels, comprising a pair of similar inverted, substantially triangular shaped members having portions thereof in the vicinity of the top of the holder arranged in over-lapping relationship, the lower portions of said members extending over the flanged portion of the bottom panel, whereby to reinforce the same, a unitary handle for the container comprising horizontal top and bottom portions, a vertical leg and a forwardly tapered gripping member, said top and bottom portions, vertical leg and gripping members defining an elongated handhold, the vertical leg extending the full length of the rear panel and being secured thereto along the central vertical axis thereof, and latch means mounted on the horizontal top portion of the handle, said latch means comprising a slide member operatively secured to the top portion of the handle and adapted for free sliding movement toward and away from the rear panel, whereby 5 6 when the holder is turned to pouring position, the slide References Cited in the file of this patent moves, under the influence of gravity, forwardly of said UNITED STATES PATENTS horizontal top portion into overhanging relationship with respect to said rear panel, thus restraining outward move- 55335 ag g ment of a carton with respect to the holder. 5

2,810,503 Krueger Oct. 22, 1957 

